Borough of Manhattan Community College s1

Faculty Council September 23, 2009

BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE The City University of New York

COLLEGE COUNCIL

Minutes September 23, 2009 N-402

I. President Pérez called the meeting to order at 2:15 PM.

II. Everyone attended except:

Student Representatives have not yet been chosen.

Blake James Hong Jeff Chen Yan Kalogeropoulos, Nicolaos Chichester Rawle Krauss David Chorley Richard Nichols Jacqueline Creaco Anthony Powell Connett Hernandez Joel Samuels Elena Hirsch Jenna Smoke Gary

III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES:

A. The minutes of the May 27, 2009 College Council Meeting were approved. B. The minutes of the May 27, 2009 College Council Organizational Meeting were approved.

IV. REPORT - President Antonio Pérez

A. President Pérez discussed capacity questions:

A.1.The target for capacity was 22,000 ± 500.

A.2.The actual capacity this semester is 21,700.

A.3.Thanks to the Admissions and Financial Aid, some of the students who were not able to register for this semester were redirected to the 2010 Spring Semester.

A.4.There was a spike in enrollment at Queensboro, and Kingsboro.

B. Fiterman Hall

B.1.The completion date continues to be 2012. 2 B.2.Fiterman is in the process of being deconstructed, and Vice President Scott Anderson said that the workers had reached the seventh floor.

C. Space Issues

C.1.Office space continues to be tight.

C.2.There has been a certain amount of reshuffling as a result of new faculty hires.

C.3.The space crunch has not impacted the Administration’s commitment to hire full-time faculty to improve the student/faculty ratio.

C.4.Continuing Education enrollment is up.

D. President Pérez introduced new faculty.

E. Questions:

E.1. Professor Conway mentioned the University Faculty Senate’s concern about Central Administration’s push to cut back on Continuing Education as a cost-cutting measure.

E.2. Professor Vozick

E.2.a. Stated that BMCC is the most overcrowded community college in the United States and requested the actual numbers. He also asked for the numbers concerning the swing space we were currently using.

E.2.b. President Pérez said that Vice President Anderson had the numbers and asked him to present the numbers at a future meeting . President Pérez said that we intended to keep the Murray Street space even after Fiterman was completed.

E.3. President Pérez also stated that we were at some critical junctures:

E.3.a. For the first time, BMCC closed registration prior to September 1.

E.3.b. The demographics of our students are changing.

E.3.c. Some decisions will have to be made to respond to these shifting demographics. 2 3

V. STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS

A. Campus Facilities and Security - Vice President Anderson presented

a report from the Campus Facilities and Security Committee. (See Attachment 3.)

1. Professor Ramirez said that the renovation of the swimming pool was wonderful.

2. Professor Hill asked about the renovation of the cafeteria. Vice President Anderson stated that it was still a work in progress, some permits were needed, and that new furniture would be coming in November.

3. Professor Rauscher asked about the crunch at the Murray Street elevators. Vice President Anderson said:

a. We will never get more than five elevators.

b. He was trying to work with security guards to make the line for the elevators more manageable.

c. There would be some adjustment in class starting times in the future.

d. Our lease does not allow us to use the fire stairs except in an emergency.

4. Professor Susana Powell said that several faculty members teaching at Murray Street complained that there had never been a fire drill at Murray Street in which the students actually evacuated the building. Vice President Anderson said that the faculty members were mistaken and that such drills had occurred.

5. Professor Delano asked if the pool renovations were “green,” and Vice President Anderson said that they were.

6. Professor Delano asked about the escalator installation.

a. Vice President Anderson said that south side “Up” elevators would be completed by December 12th

b. The December 12th date was 8 ½ months ahead of schedule.

3 4 c. Professor Delano recommended signs to encourage use of the stairs between floors.

7. Professor Vozick asked about sustainability. Vice President Anderson said:

a. There was a meeting of the committee scheduled and that a sustainability conference would be hosted by BMCC.

b. BMCC receiver $11 million from the Obama administration to improve energy efficiency, particularly to the HVAC system.

B. Technology Committee presented a report. (See Attachment 1)

VI. OLD BUSINESS:

A. Elections: Elections will be held for the following positions:

1. Executive Committee - Three (3) Year Terms– One Faculty or Staff as a replacement for one year. Professor Marcos Zyman was elected unanimously.

2. Budget Committee – One (1) Year Term - Four Faculty or Staff. The following individuals were elected unanimously:

a. Yanni Tournas

b. Annie Han

c. Barry Cooper

d. Karen Wenderoff

3. Campus Facilities and Security Committee – One (1) Year Term- Four Faculty or Staff. The following individuals were elected unanimously:

a. Avi Goldstein

b. Phillipa Kim

c. Josephine Russo

d. Claudia Terry

4. Technology Committee – One (1) Year Term - Four Faculty or Staff. The following individuals were elected unanimously:

a. William Guttenplan

b. Victor Mahatheva

c. Alicia Perdano

B. The Ad Hoc Committee on Corrective Changes to the Governance Plan presented proposed changes to the Governance Plan for action. (See Attachment # 2.)

1. Motion:

a. It is recommended that the Governance Charter be revised to eliminate CLT’s as individuals who can be elected at large in view of the fact that two seats in the Academic Senate are dedicated exclusively to the CLT’s. These two dedicated seats provide CLT’s with substantial representation in the Academic Senate and College Council.

b. Action: Passed with two nay votes – Professors Vozick and Lapides

2. Motion:

a. It is recommended that any teaching adjunct or adjunct CLT who has received a one year appointment for the fall semester preceding the election be eligible to run for Academic Senate when elections are held in the spring.

b. Action: Passed unanimously.

3. Motion:

a. It is recommended that when a member of the Academic Senate or College Council commences Travia Leave, he/she will be deemed to have automatically vacated his/her office on the first day of Travia Leave.

b. Action: 5 6 i. 2/3 vote needed.

ii. Yes: 34 votes; No: 31 votes; Invalid: 21 votes

iii. The motion was defeated.

4. The rest of the proposed changes to the Governance will be considered at the October 28, 2009 meeting.

VII. NEW BUSINESS:

A. The Academic Senate will present for discussion a proposal to create a new Academic Senate Standing Committee on Academic Freedom.

VIII. President Pérez adjourned the meeting at 3:05 PM.

Attachment # 1

College Council Technology Committee Report

Technologically Enhanced Classrooms: During the summer 38 rooms at Chambers Street were converted to Technologically Enhanced Classrooms. These rooms now to include a computer with internet access, ceiling mounted projector, amplifier, speakers and pull down screen. Access to the rooms is via BMCC ID cards utilizing proximity sensing locks. The new TEC rooms are:

N401, N403, N406, N407, N408, N409, N410, N411, N413, N415,N416, N417, N438, N439, N440, N442, N510, N516, N519, N557, N559,N629, N633, N687, N689, S102, S104, S601, S602, S603,S604, S703, S704, S705 and S729.

The total number of Technologically Enhanced Classrooms at the college is 64. A. complete list of “TEC rooms” is listed on the college website at http://www.bmcc.cuny.edu/faculty-staff/tech_guide.html Periodic progress updates will be forthcoming as this is an ongoing project with the goal of upgrading all suitable teaching spaces to include technology. Existing TEC rooms and all computer labs will be upgraded to include amplifier and speakers. Attached is a copy of the “Technologically Enhanced Classroom Instructions” which is affixed to instructor tables in TEC rooms.

7 8 Technologically Enhanced Classroom Instructions

Room Access: Room access is via ID card. Locks are programmed to recognize faculty/staff BMCC ID cards. If you need access to a room please call public safety at x8136.

Equipment Usage:  Power up equipment – please power up workstation, monitor and projector. Some rooms will have “all in one” units where one power switch controls both monitor and system. If the workstation is already powered up please “restart” the unit. Amplifiers power up automatically, no action required.  Wall screen – pull down wall screen.  Please be advised that you need to login to authenticate into the college network. Faculty should use their Novell desktop username and password.  Load media – when windows desktop appears please load your media (CD/DVD/flash drive) if applicable. Please note that some flash drives may require drivers to be loaded. It is recommended that you have your material available on CD ROM as a backup.  Volume control for sound is via the loudspeaker icon on the lower right hand task bar.

Before leaving the room:  Power down workstation and monitor.  Projector – press power and you will be prompted with “ press power again to shutdown projector” then press power again to complete the process. Please note that the fan may continue running to cool the projector bulb. The fan will shutdown automatically once the bulb reaches the proper temperature.  Return screen to the up position.  Please have all students leave the room and lock the door.

Support:  Assistance is available via phone at 212 220 8122.  Assistance via email is available at [email protected].  Assistance is available in person in S608a or M1109.  Login username and passwords assistance is available in S165.  Any items not covered above please call 212 220 8122.  Please forward any suggestions for improving procedures or this handout to [email protected].

Attachment # 2

The Members of the College Council

FROM: Vice President Diaz, Chairperson of the Ad Hoc Committee on Corrective Changes to the College Governance Plan

RE: Proposed Revisions to the Governance Plan

DATE: March 25, 2009

The Ad Hoc Committee met in the fall of ‘08 and spring of ’09 semesters to review the college governance plan and discuss proposed revisions. Several of the changes we discussed were items that were discussed last year but were considered too late in the review process to be included in the proposed revisions presented to the College Council in the spring of 2008. Other changes were items the Academic Senate, in the Fall of 2008, asked the Ad Hoc Committee to consider. The Ad Hoc Committee is comprised of Professors Hollis Glaser, Marguerite Rivas, and Colin Persaud, and Vice President Diaz. The Committee unanimously submits the following recommendations:

I. CLT Representation Issue Issue: Under the 1983 College Governance Plan CLT’s were grouped with the department faculty and could have been elected to serve in the old Faculty Council as a department representative or as a faculty at large representative.

As a result of the April 2007 revisions, CLTs may be elected to be a representative in the Academic Senate in either of two ways. a) They may be elected as faculty delegate at large. There are twenty five faculty at large seats (See Article 1, Part A, Section 2, a, iii); and b) There are two academic senate seats, reserved exclusively for CLTs. (See Article 1, Part A, Section 2, a,v) Thus, CLT representation will be no less than two and could in theory be as many as twenty seven.

Currently, in the College Council, Higher Education Officers, College Assistants and Civil Servants each have two representatives on the College Council. Adjuncts and Adjunct CLT’s have four representatives in the college governance bodies. Current staff data indicates that there are:

122 Higher Education Officers 272 Civil Servants 300 College Assistants 9 10 32 CLT’s 400 Full-Time Faculty 868 Adjuncts & Adjunct CLT’s

Two Higher Education Officers represent .02% of the Higher Education Staff. Two Civil Servants represent .007% of the Civil Service Staff. Two College Assistants represent .006% of the College Assistant Staff. Two CLT’s represents .06% of the Full-Time CLT’s. Four Adjuncts represents .005% of the Adjunct/Adjunct CLT Staff.

The Ad Hoc Committee believes the two seats dedicated exclusively to full time CLT’s provide the full-time CLT’s with significant and adequate representation on the college governance bodies.

Recommendation: It is recommended that the Governance Charter be revised to eliminate CLT’s as individuals who can be elected at large in view of the fact that two seats in the Academic Senate are dedicated exclusively to CLT’s. These two dedicated seats provide CLT’s with substantial representation in the Academic Senate and College Council.

II. Standard to be used to determine when an adjunct or part-time CLT is eligible to be a adjunct Academic Senate delegate.

The college’s governance plan at Article 1, Part A, Section 2, a, iv provides that, to be eligible to be a adjunct or part-time CLT delegate, the individual must be: (1) Currently employed; (2) Must have been employed for at least six semesters; (3) Where the six semesters are not consecutive, the individual must be serving in at least their second consecutive semester at the college at the time of the election; and (4) They serve a one year term and may not succeed themselves after having served three successive years.

The above language provides a confusing standard and presents difficulty when attempting to certify the list of eligible candidates. No electronic data bank can be manipulated to develop the list of eligible candidates provided by this standard.

Recommendation: In the Fall of ’08 there were 810 teaching adjuncts and 58 adjunct CLTs. Four hundred and twenty of these teaching adjuncts received one year appointment letters and 15 part-time CLTs received one year appointment letters. To be eligible for a one year appointment letter, the adjunct or part-time CLT must have worked at the college for six consecutive semesters. It is recommended that any teaching adjunct or adjunct CLT who has received a one year appointment for the fall semester preceding 10 11 the election be eligible to run for Academic Senate when elections are held in the spring.

III. Term of Office for Adjunct and Part-time CLT Representative Currently the teaching adjunct and adjunct CLT representatives serve a one year term and can serve three consecutive terms. The current requirement of annual elections is labor intensive and does not allow sufficient time between the election and the May organizational meeting to seat the part-time adjunct or adjunct CLT by the May meeting.

Recommendation: It is recommended that the adjuncts be elected to a three year term and cannot serve more than two consecutive terms. Elections will be required to be held in April to enable seating the adjuncts at the May organizational meeting. If an adjunct is not reappointed, is terminated, or leaves during his or her term of office, the vacancy will be filled from the list of candidates from the prior election or by the chairperson of the Academic Senate, if no eligible person is on the list.

To provide that the election of the adjuncts is on the same cycle as the election of the HEO, Civil Servants and College Assistant representatives, it is recommended that the adjuncts currently in place be grandfathered in until the spring 2010 semester, when elections will be held for these offices.

IV. Concerns Raised by the Academic Senate A. Travia Leave: Currently, if a member of the Academic Senate or College Council is on Travia Leave (Retirement Leave) they continue to serve on the Academic Senate or College Council since they could, in theory, rescind their decision to retire up to the date of retirement. While they are on Travia Leave they are off campus and it is very unlikely they will come to campus for the college governance meetings.

Recommendation: It is recommended that where a member of the Academic Senate or College Council commences Travia Leave, he/she will be deemed to have automatically vacated his/her office on the first day of Travia Leave.

B. Concerns with the number of faculty serving on College Council Committees.

Originally, as many as twenty four faculty or staff members of the College Council were required to staff College Council Committees. Prior changes to the Governance Plan reduced this number to 20.